The union representing workers at the Department of Water and Power filed a lawsuit against the agency this week, seeking to block the release of employee salary information.

The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 18, which represents about 10,000 DWP workers, is suing the DWP over the release of employees’ names and salaries, citing state rules that protect some workers’ information over personal safety issues.

The data was requested by the Los Angeles Times through a public records request.

IBEW 18 head Brian D’Arcy didn’t respond to a request for comment Thursday.

DWP spokesman Joe Ramallo declined to comment on the lawsuit, filed late Wednesday, but released a copy of a letter sent to the Times indicating the DWP plans to release the information.

Coming three weeks before the Los Angeles mayoral election, the lawsuit shines a spotlight on the higher than average wages at the utility, already a contentious issue in the race.

In recent weeks, mayoral candidates Eric Garcetti and Wendy Greuel have accused one another of failing to rein in labor costs at the department.

Salaries at the DWP are 20 to 46 percent higher than at other utility companies, according to a report commissioned by the city council last year.

At separate events on Thursday, Greuel and Garcetti both called for the names and salaries to be released to the public before the May 21 election.

“I believe everything should be transparent,” said Greuel, speaking at an event in Sherman Oaks.

At his headquarters in Sherman Oaks, Garcetti also spoke out against the IBEW 18’s lawsuit and called for Greuel to use her position as city controller to publish the data.

IBEW 18 contends the DWP ignored complaints from workers who didn’t want their names and salaries released over privacy issues.

The lawsuit notes that the DWP must “comply with the California constitution by providing each affected employee with notice of the Los Angeles Times’ request, and providing each of them with the opportunity to object to disclosure of that information that would invade their protected privacy interests and compromise their personal safety.”

Some workers, such as police officers, are exempt from disclosing personal information for safety reasons.

A hearing in the case is planned for early next week.

City Attorney Carmen Trutanich said Thursday his office will “vigorously oppose any such lawsuit, while at the same time protecting the handful of records as allowed under the law pertaining to employees whose safety might be placed at risk by disclosure.

“We believe that all of the City’s departments should comply in a timely manner with the letter and the spirit of the law, so that transparency prevails.”

In 2007, the Daily News posted the salaries and names of DWP employees on its website.

Ron Kaye, the former Daily News editor who oversaw the publication of the salaries, said in an interview Thursday that IBEW 18 sought to stop release of the DWP documents at that time, but the paper prevailed.

The DWP salary database sparked outrage among readers and angered some workers at the utility.

Some DWP workers were worried their ex-wives would demand more in alimony payments after realizing how much their former spouses earned, Kaye said.

Join the Conversation

We invite you to use our commenting platform to engage in insightful conversations about issues in our community. Although we do not pre-screen comments, we reserve the right at all times to remove any information or materials that are unlawful, threatening, abusive, libelous, defamatory, obscene, vulgar, pornographic, profane, indecent or otherwise objectionable to us, and to disclose any information necessary to satisfy the law, regulation, or government request. We might permanently block any user who abuses these conditions.

If you see comments that you find offensive, please use the “Flag as Inappropriate” feature by hovering over the right side of the post, and pulling down on the arrow that appears. Or, contact our editors by emailing moderator@scng.com.